Zavier Simpson is drawing comparisons to old-school stars for his running hook shot

Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Jan 10, 2019

Mike Mulholland | MLive.com

Michigan guard Zavier Simpson (3) shoots the ball during the second half of their Big Ten basketball game against Indiana at Crisler Center in Ann Arbor on Sunday, January 6, 2019. Michigan won the game, 74-63. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)

ANN ARBOR -- One of the more improbably successful shots in college basketball came about by accident.

At an open gym two seasons ago, then-freshman Zavier Simpson found himself guarded by D.J. Wilson on a fast break. Wilson, who would become a first-round NBA draft pick after that season, is 6-foot-10 with a 7-foot-3 wingspan. Simpson is generously listed at 6-foot.

A strong drive to the hoop wouldn't suffice against Wilson's length. So Simpson tried a running hook shoot, off the glass. It went in.

"I did it on accident," Simpson said Wednesday. "And I knew it would be a good shot if I perfected it."

Simpson has indeed mastered a shot not often seen since the 1970s, and hardly ever used by a player of his size.

Simpson's epiphany occurred at the same time college basketball implemented a new rule. Starting with the 2016-17 season, it became legal for a defender to jump straight up, with his arms raised, to try and block a shot, even if he is in the restricted arc in front of the basket. Officials call this action the "principle of verticality." Coaches refer to it as "walling up." Previously, this was a defensive foul, and often inspired offensive players to initiate mid-air contact. Simpson's predecessor, Derrick Walton Jr., exceled at that.

Simpson went to work on a new way to score in the paint.

The three running hook shots he made in the second half against Indiana on Sunday were no accident. Simpson practices the shot daily. Michigan coach John Beilein calls it "BOBA," an acronym for "body on, ball away." Take the contact, keep the ball away from the defender.

"The only way the smaller guards can score right now in front of a 'jump wall' is the old-fashioned hook," Beilein said on Sunday. "We work on it, and you'll probably see a lot of it in the future. It's soft and nice. Kareem would be proud."

That would be Kareem Abdul-Jabaar, who won six NBA MVPs between 1971 and 1980. Beilein isn't the only one who's made the comparison.

Clark Kellogg was the color analyst for CBS for Michigan's game against Indiana. He starred at Ohio State, was a first-round draft pick in 1982, and has covered college basketball since 1990.

During the broadcast, he was clearly fond of Simpson's hooks. Afterwards, he provided additional context to MLive.

Noting he'd seen "only" about 80 college basketball teams so far this season, Kellogg couldn't recall a player shooting a running hook shot. The Los Angeles Lakers' Rajon Rondo was the only guard he could think of, in recent history, who occasionally attempts the shot.

"It is quite rare and unique in this day, and a big reason why I got so excited about seeing it shot and made," Kellogg wrote in an email. "Nostalgic and beautiful!"

Kellogg referenced a few former stars who mastered the sweeping hook: George Mikan, Cliff Hagan, and Bob Cousy, who played in the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. And, of course, Abdul-Jabaar, who owns the most famous sky hook.

Unlike a big man who might back down his defender with a few dribbles before trying a hook, Simpson will often drive from the 3-point line, veer through the lane, and take the shot on the run. It is a way for Simpson to score over a taller defender or create extra space.

"You're not going to get all the way to the rim, but you get a little leverage on 'em, use your off hand a little bit, and get a hook shot," he said earlier in the season. "It may look weird but if you perfect it, it actually works."

While he's mostly attempted the shot with his right hand in games, he said he's worked on it with both hands from various spots on the floor. Sometimes he uses the backboard, but not always.

"It's very hard to block," said Michigan's 7-foot-1 center, Jon Teske. "When we're playing open gyms, I have trouble getting to it. It's so far to the side that not a lot of people can really get to it."

Because of Simpson's success with the shot, Michigan's other guards have been practicing it.

Why the hook shot over the more conventional floater? Beilein explained that the floater is more appropriate if a player beats his defender and has a big man to contend with at the rim. Even then, the floater, which has a much lower release point than the hook, has to be shot early enough to avoid getting blocked.

"He's going to find himself in that situation a lot, where people will not give help, he beats his man slightly but not completely, and he's got to be able to find a way to find leverage to score," Beilein said.

“The hook shot’s just more comfortable for me,” Simpson said Wednesday. “The floaters will come as well, but it’s hard to do a floater when someone is hip-checking you.”

Since there's a statistic for everything in sports these days, we know that Simpson is 7-for-10 on hook shots this season, according to Bart Torvik of t-rank.com. Simpson appears on a list of the most productive hook shot artists among players mostly 6-foot-9 and taller.

Simpson is turning the tables on the big men this season. He said some have commented on his hook shot: "That's nice," one told him. Another called it "unstoppable." A couple said, "That's lucky."